Subject Eye

Joey Arias: Can’t Help Lovin’ Dat Man

I first got to know Joey Arias in the early 1980s when he worked at the trendsetting 59^th street boutique Fiorucci, back when you could be hired to embody the zeitgeist of a company. By then he was already a well known downtown NYC performer. And Joey had already been seen by millions on SNL, as a back-up singer with David Bowie (along with another legendary downtown singer Klaus Nomi).

Joey had and still has an amazing sense of style, and he was a fixture at Fiorucci during this time. I’m sure many people queued up to see ‘the New-Wave Man’. I was just starting my clothing label ‘Rika’, which was my nickname given to me by my friend, the pop singer Madonna (I love calling her the pop singer, lest she confused with the Mother Mary). Through the efforts of the fashion editor Carrie Donovan I was asked to showcase some of my wares at Fiorucci, and I could always count on Joey to introduce my line to some of his celebrity clients, like Margaux Hemingway, Gregory Hines and Christie Brinkley.

With the actress Ann Magnuson, Joey could be seen in several short films, where he played a range of characters, my favorite being when he portrayed Andy Warhol with Ann in the role of Edie Sedgwick. But Joey’s most formidable talent was and is his singing ability; he could sing in several octaves and he has the ability to sings two notes at once. I think there are very few people who can sing chords. There are also few people who could channel the voice of Billie Holiday. Joey can.

It was hard coming up with a gift for Madonna for her first bridal shower (for her marriage to Sean Penn I gave her a bunch of straight boys in dresses – a long story for another Subject Eye), but someone had the smarts to hire Joey, who came as the performer Prince and sang Little Red Corvette to a delighted crowd of revelers. Remembering Joey’s performance that night, I think he may have “out-princed” Prince, not an easy thing to do.

I also enjoyed seeing Joey over the years in many incarnations, like his cameo in Pee Wee Herman’s Big Top movie and at the now defunct Bar D’O, where he was one of the featured singers with Raven O and Sherry Vine. He was sorely missed in NY when he left to perform in Cirque de Soleil’s Zumanity in Las Vegas, where he originated the role of the Mistress of Seduction.

You can see Joey right now in Arias With a Twist, an incredibly inventive show he created with the puppeteer Basil Twist in 2008, at the Abrons Art Center through October 16th. It is one high-flying extravaganza, with costumes created by the designer Manfred Thierry Mugler (I’ll bet the Chrysler Building is jealous of the dress Joey wears during his finale). Joey continues to thrill us all with his talent and I continue to be grateful for his friendship.